tis the season everyone. hopefully you're back inside and done shoveling for the day. the caps and oilers are scoreless after 20 minutes. what is it, 11:00 home in the east. craig laughlin talking about network hockey. >> get on the phone and call (443)618-9042. setting up a no obligation for family consultation to talk about nhdt about and what it can do for the kids in the

summer. june, july, and august, heavy on and off ice training to make sure you're ready for the best season ever. >> what did you do talk to an attorney. no obligation family consultation? are you kidding me? break it down on the power play for us. >> first hold it here. what we are talking about here, a nice triangle. that's when you want to set up on the power play. you have semin down low. it's backstrom. now they again establish puck control. what we are looking at here again is 2d. working the triangle down low. the unfortunate thing is backstrom shoots this way. it's hard to step out and get a shot on net. when it does come down, he has to look for a pass rather than stuff, joe. that's why they would rather have it on the other side. the way they have set it up here, an umbrella plus 2. here it is, um bell will across the top. here's semin across the net.

the man in front being taken out. they want to establish traffic. one thing they did not do last night as they continue to roll it. they got a couple of shots through, but not enough guys. that was semin in front, and then the clear. they need more shots here tonight against the oilers. penalty killers, express, enjoying the journey. >> joe: the journey coming to an end. the end of the four-game road trip. period number two unfolds for yo

this comcast sportsnet coverage of capitals hockey is being brought to you by sport automotive chevrolet and honda. visit sportautomotive.com. and whether you need management support or it strategy, look to net star 1 for proven results. navigating the business of government and industry. pretty hectic day around the

nfl. a dozen games going on with comcast sportsnet nhl extra for you. caps and oilers are scoreless under 20 minutes of play. news and notes from around the nhl. >> not nice if you're an oilers fan. the minnesota wild's equipment caught on fire in their equipment truck last night. they had some flown in today at 9:00 a.m. including the goal tending equipment. 11 guys escaped without having

to jump on tonight. >> joe: bruce boudreau, changing up on the go. deslauriers bumping this one. away come the oilers. meanwhile, there's a scrap. chris clark with the gloves off, steve s staals.

>> craig: early in his career he would always drop gloves. not a lot of punches thrown, maybe one bunch got through. clark and staals should get five minutes each. here's how it starks clark along the wall. pushing and shoving with the two. the right hand around him and he tries to corkscrew him between the legs. he didn't like it. saying let's go, and they had a little dent to the right of deslauriers. >> joe: inside the second period. the caps next in action, tangoing with buffalo wednesday at the verizon center. hosting st. louis here on monday.

sheldon swinging around the boards and back to center. making the save, rebound, and they score. 2 on 1. horcoff benefits. >> craig: the first miscue of the game, granted it was the capital's defense. two on zero as you describe, joe. that's what the goalie is expected to do, stop the first one. you can't stop the second one. here's the play to the middle. there's schultz bobbling the puck. right to the edmonton oilers, and here comes the oilers, right n all alone. o'sullivan, the follow up to horcoff, 1-0 edmonton oilers. there >> joe: horcoff getting it.

ovechkin and the caps are offside on the rush. >> craig: tough couple of games for scultzy. last night off his skate boot. here he coughs one up the middle with his partner not around. his team now trails by one on the giveaway, trying to pass up the middle, joe. >> joe: edmonton in washington, locker, each team with the same amount of wins in december. both won five times. the oilers were outstanding on the road trip of their own, took five straight but then they have had problems winning inside their own barn. jumping to the advantage by the blue. >> craig: the first time ever in the history of the franchise they went 5-0. and they beat some big one. dallas, florida, tampa bay, and st. louis. as you look at the numbers for pat quinn, starts off well. november a bit of a dive. december, back up to the

numbers he was expecting, taking over as the coach. >> joe: care to guess how old alex ovechkin was the last time the caps took over? he was ten. he will squeeze. semlin was 7. 7 years old. >> craig: it's been the house of horrors for capitals. playing with a more balanced schedule but not anymore in the nfl. not a lot of western conference games on your skej and because of that, you don't get out a lot. >> joe: sneed in the corner with fleischmann. trying to get it loose with gagner. oilers on top if you're just getting back to your television. horcoff from o'sullivan. >> craig: positive take out of this game so far is the fact

they had the 2-0 lead on nashville, joe. nashville with the timeout, and his team came back against the edmonton oiler team in the last game here. >> joe: the predators who were struggling to score in the first couple of months, boy have their offense come as of late. >> craig: an odd matinee that usually doesn't happen, and they got the victory over the hometown calgary flames. >> joe: washington back home for the wednesday tilt. >> craig: will we get back home? >> joe: i sure hope so. we hope to have a game next wednesday. new jersey the day after christmas, carolina and then back out west against san jose and the sharks. and that's the 4:00 start. it's funny our travel saga has been interesting. we are headed to the same city. one of is heading there and the other is trying to get home from there.

>> craig: i hope we can fly. i will try tomorrow with my daughter. >> joe: god speed, boys, especially of those of you in the truck. >> craig: you will get snowed in here. they are supposed to have two feet of snow here. >> joe: excellent, appreciate that. >> craig: now you will be thinking of that all night. >> joe: no, it won't bother me one bit are. you kidding me? this one leaves the rink. >> craig: a puck left the rink tonight? >> joe: yes. another sellout here in western canada, sells out every game. great fan base here in edmonton with a great tradition that they have built up here from top brass we looked at with the tampa native, and all the guys involved here, a great following here. >> joe: we are just off gretzky

drive, appropriately enough. mike green stepping to it. we had some fun tinkering around with potential olympic team invitees, and final roster invitees, mike green so desperately wants to be a part of team canada in your heart, does he makes the list? >> craig: i think it's a port short leadershipst one of three to make it. breaking down the percentages. >> joe: deslauriers showing his lateral mobility to make the save and cover. looked like he didn't even have a stuck on the play as it was locked out on the initial shot. came across with a scrambley sort between the pipe. first odd man break the caps have had going across. look at his pads, and then the stick knocked out at the end that play. backstrom looking off plank to fehr sneaking in. >> joe: whenever i see the

shootout highlights, he makes spectacular stops with his ability to cover post to post. he has been wonderful this evening, making his 8th straight start with nikolai khabibulin on the shelf with back trouble. on the intercept, reeling him in. lubomir visnovsky settling settling in for his third full year with edmonton. back coming david steckel. going into the offensive zone. tracked down in the corner. off the cycle there, the oilers with the intercept. sloan creeping in from the point position, well time pinch. knuble shoveled for fleischmann, you get him the

puck, and he usually turns on the light when he pulls the trigger. right to the crease oh, deslauriers marvelous with the glove. there's a power play to come. >> craig: good work by brendan morrison. he halts and creates the penalty. should have actually stashed one, but the catching glove as we noted in the first period, just performing excellently for deslauriers. what a move that was. down low against sam gagner. just a tipsy do at the finest level. and this save even better. there he is, down and out. doesn't control the rebound. morrison on the doorstep. should have tied this game up. >> joe: then gagner getting played for the hook. edmonton breaking out on top for the 2nd period. the 8th of the year, 65 seconds in. the power play stats packaged by the ups store. the oilers shorthanded in their own barn penalty killing on 81

personality of the -- 81% of the year. alex ovechkin, just one goal on his last eight outings. time to bust loose on this trip. in for thome to send him packing. >> craig: i'm sure there's pressure on green. talking about the olympics and mike green's status. obviously playing in front of kevin lowe. probably has a big say in the play for canada coming up. he wants to put on a big show with kevin lowe in attendance. >> joe: brendan morrison's pass didn't have enough starch on it. that was a good save on the angle. now the long counterattack. flagged out of the air. sheldon doing the trick. >> craig: that was an excellent trip there. standing around too much and not moving the puck or moving their feet with the extra man. >> joe: ovechkin firing at the stick save for deslauriers.

>> craig: doesn't that sound great if you're a goalie, just the way came off the pads, you know you're in good position. >> joe: for semin, the pass away from him. there's green once more. towards the cage. cut down by sneed. sneed with plenty of open space to clear. green to turn out of his own zone. on for backstrom. slicing between defenders. 24 seconds with which to work on the bo power play. green a fine pass. trying to go tap tap for semin at the doorstep, but it never arrived. green for o'vetchic, it's the breaks, scanning the defense win to win for backstrom along with sneed, backstrom serving it ovechkin fires. that's blocked. beautifully timed by morrow. green on the overlap.

wrister coming, deflected wide by laich. laich wide and fires. m. the center for dc as the caps are in the middle of a shift change. nearing the 8 minutes mark of the second period. >> craig: the edmonton oilers doing a lot to help out their goalie. >> joe: quintin laing coming in. deflected wide by laing. charging after sneed who has to be dog tired now. going the other way for edmonton. the youngster down the flank. racedraced there by jurcina. quinlan lane and tech -- quinn tan laing and steckel.

on the offside rush for edmonton. the oilers looking to get back in the win column here at home. o'sullivan on the breakaway. blue and orange have the advantage.

comedian: stroke's no joke. >> okay, everyone, we have a lot to cover this morning. tim should be here any second with the latest budget numbers to -- uhh, take us through the initial... schedule... for production and..ndndndnd >> ouch. >> this is one way to avoid getting the h1n1 flu virus. >> oopsie daisy. >> all right. good morning! let's get this meeting started. >> for some better ways, visit flu.gov. [man sneezes] [groans] [groans] the edmonton oilers with the advantage over mike green and the washington capitals. we have been discussing the olympic team and team canada in particular. in this legal sea foods fight of the night, mike green

explaining how important team canada would be for him. >> it would mean everything to me. when i was younger i missed the world junior tournament. for this, this has been my goal for the last four years since i started playing in the nhl, and it would be the greatest day of my life. i said this before, but i truely feel that way. >> joe: and craig, you and i, and everyone in the traveling party bounce back and forth with locks, and then all of a sudden today i hear maybe shea webber on the team. maybe? shea webber maybe? >> craig: and then i hear locke is doubtful from the la kings. just the numbers that green has put up this year and last year makes him a great candidate for the limpics. >> joe: if brent seabrooke doesn't make that, i think that helps the candidacy. >> craig: the way green skates, i think he's a perfect fit for

team canada. >> joe: using the boards to get it to shown. on to brooke. blistered wide. nelson going the other way -- nilsson going the other way. tom redding said some day strudwick will be an outstanding coach. >> craig: he has got some hockey background at 6'4", 225, hometown boy that's nice to have in edmonton alberta. >> craig: i would say that's a lot for team canada. >> joe: stronger the second long. -- lock. we will get into this more. we are crossing our fingers 52 in the white can get that. >> craig: and the rest of the cast with the opportunity. it would be great to see six or seven of the caps make the

olympics for the respective countries. fleischmann trying to change the score. visnovsky no doubt being part of the limpic mix. >> craig: he's a guy really bringing offense to the table. >> joe: nicklas backstrom scoring goals of plenty in recent weeks. picking up the scoring pace, the disher and debtup guy. more than half way through regulation, the only score in this hockey game, 65 seconds in period two. the fine stop on o'sullivan and horcoff with the rebound. ovechkin crossing over. tracked down by morrow. >> craig: now quick did that room close. he looked like he had room, and then there were three oilers in a triangle covering alex ovechkin.

>> joe: it was great to hear pat quinn discussing this man. pulling the trigger, and then grabbing with the blocker pad. now you have some tough stuff. edmonton on top, 1-0 as tempers flair. puts it up, he got it. davis will wrap around.

russian born alex ovechkin held in. he's a fashion model. >> craig: it's great to be alex ovechkin. the ball -- baldwin on the front there. about watches, styling, that's ovechkin. they are eating caviar to give you energy. alex ovechkin, all over the pages there of the new men's journal. >> joe: caviar gives you energy? >> craig: sure it does, fish eggs. >> joe: i'm not on the boluga team. far away. >> craig: on a cracker, you can't beat it. >> joe: i can beat it, with a stick. switching it up. alex ovechkin styling in men's journal. here's jury chi that to -- jurcina to play it. continuing with the attendance

here tonight. >> craig: we know mike fisher and his girlfriend right there. >> joe: hillary dove. separated by a partition. >> craig: yeah. now my thing works. >> joe: that would be the telestrator. >> craig: yeah, exactly. >> joe: thank you for claire fying that. >> craig: probably my fault too. >> joe: this is melted down. stortini loving to stir it up in front. >> craig: for being a tough guy, he's created the energy that edmonton has to have if they are going to get their stuff straightened up here at home. that they bring a lot of speed to the table. there he is. looking like a tough guy. is a tough guy. 178 games played in over 510 in his career. >> joe: path quinn scratching

jf jacques tonight. cody coffling this around. jurcina looking after it. dustin penner, stop throw from him. washington trailing, in edmonton tonight, off the one- goal loss. that's tapped aside. cody waiting for the breakout to begin. he had to give it up for a floater back up deslauriers' neighborhood. this guy is a decent play maker from the back end as welt. good passer. scooped it, on one big give there. into the corn e289. sloan and gagner going around and around. sam gagner emerging with it. sneed this way. rejected by aldner. fleischmann for knuble and back out. mike knuble cleared in.

and then working the floor check with brendan morrison. >> craig: not a good clear there by sneed. along the wall, allowing the caps to come in and keep the play alive. >> joe: 1-0 for the oilers. horcoff here in the 2nd. looking at the breakout beginning. it happens quickly behind the net. morrow down the lane. armed away by dorber. i did see a quote saying we will not allow alex ovechkin to get three goals tonight. >> craig: that would be that quote. >> joe: that youngster should learn that could be quickly used as material. bruce going to the oilers doing a nice job keeping ovechkin and all the caps for that matter off the floor.

o'sullivan with the good skate. there's no rebound. cadillac has the local primary dealership in the area for 50 years. demandmore.net. caps' fans are wondering how they work in the snow with all that snow at home. >> craig: put it in four-wheel drive, you will be fine. >> joe: green hovering back behind the cage. rolling one to the front. stone is there. down. ovechkin with gilbert right close nearby, and then stone and ovechkin coming together. >> craig: that was perfect. one of the keys to the game for the edmonton oilers was superspacing. the spacing i mean is the space between the forward and the defenders. the only way gilbert was able to stand up here, was the fact that the puck was coming here.

here's the hit at the end of the play. the fact he had support of the defencemen. the supporting of sloan and taken away at the red light, folks. not getting any clear breaks here tonight against the oilers. >> joe: pretty similar story to last night. >> craig: yeah. >> joe: willie mitchell did a nice job. i think you would say vancouver has a five-man unit forming well. boudreau back to ovechkin. this one in the webbing. crowding him in the crease. 5:46 to go in the second period. low scoring in edmonton on csn. ♪

♪ i always feel like (announcer) it's right here, it's easy... ♪ somebody's watching me. ...it's the money you could be saving with geico. ♪ who's watching? ♪ tell me who's watching. (muffled music) (announcer) it's right here, it's easy... ♪ i always feel like somebody's watching me. ♪ it's the money you could be saving with geico.

folks having a great time. n. oilers with the 1-0 advantage over your caps. when the caps make the comeback, nicklas backstrom is likely to help when you look back at the 2006 draft picks. >> craig: head of the class. 196. n. staal and peter who was a surprise on that list. he's putting up nice point in the national hockey league. >> joe: 200th game for backstrom. he has never missed a game in the nhl. >> craig: another goalie that

went achl to the nhl, devan dubnyk. >> joe: a former first round pick in the '04 draft. the one in which ovechkin went number one overall. putting it back on the other side of the table. didn't get it out. penn leaving it -- penner leaving it on the wall for us. 22 years of age. 5th year pro. >> craig: former first round pick for the blue jackets that has the goal scoring producer the teams wanted him to b. >> joe: nine goals. turning 23 on new year's day. five minutes to go in the second period. the oilers putting on pressure now. gagner, back handing it high.

that was out of position. michal neuvirth back to the post. needing to get it out for washington. that's a bad line matchup here. gagner settling. stone just off the bench for pat quinn. 32 in the blow drifting below the goal line for brule. some room, high slot back hander on the outside of the goal. staios out for a moment. he didn't get it out. >> craig: he's so tired joe, and they were stats in their own zone, caught out way too long on the shift. fortunately for the caps, it didn't cost them. >> joe: semin for the steal, no one there were washington. coming wing to wing. trying to snap out of the lengthy goal route for himself. >> craig: six or seven games

without a goal, joe. he has had the two best chances in this period and in this game. >> joe: the breakaway in the second period, the 1:05 mark. depositing the rebound for the only red light cogli aan -- cogliano shifting back. for pe potulny. oh, no, it goes in. 2-0 edmonton. [ horn sounding ] >> craig: you could just feel the blow, and i was going to say the ice rink here in edmonton has been tilted in the favor of the hometown team. there's been absolutely no flow going with the caps. and they get a lucky bounce. and you have to get lucky when

you have so much pressure. there's the right foot last night. it was schultz. cogliano with the credit for the goal. cogli a, no -- cogliano in the board. it's been tilt in the second half 06 the period, joe. >> joe: cogliano number 199. the first three were all on the road. deslauriers in hot water there for a second. gagner lifting back to center. the oilers with a two-goal lead. three minutes away from another net star intermission live. fleischmann carving his way through the defense. knuble. mike knuble, point position for green. thundering the slap shot wide. that was intentionally wide looking for the kerim.

>> craig: using the blocker to gobble up the puck. seeing them do it two or three times in this parade. >> joe: former nhl great, regular trophy winner, wines and fires. deflected by need. off the rink it goes. >> craig: just not getting enough traffic. in edmonton, stood his ground. when you look at his numbers, joe, on home ice, he hasn't been that good. 2-4-1 compared to 6-2-1 away from home. >> joe: bruce boudreau's team playing the second team in as many nights. the end of the four game road swing, trying to find some life somewhere. every time they threaten the cage, deslauriers turns them away. only detroit's jimmie howard with more starts for a quote

nhl rookie. towards the goal. flagged down by neuvirth. >> craig: staios is now contributing to pat quinn's hockey team. it gives you grit and toughness. >> joe: this guy has bounced around. traded two times, claimed another two times. his ninth full year with the edmonton oilers. 24, and the blue has to turn quickly now. chris charging after him. cogliano going with morrow. he was badgered from the blind side. 100 seconds to go in period 2. 2-0. horcoff and cogliano on the board. not going very far.

stopping and starting and getting by. not calling any. >> craig: notice boudreau not too happy. i this i they are at minus two. i think they have been on for both goals again, and he hasn't been double shifting them or rolling in this period. he's used the second, third, and fourth line the last ten minutes after the last goal went in. >> joe: dell lawyers will cover up. the capitals have been on the road. we saw coate in denver. 25 years ago something special for the former cap. >> craig: he scored his first. dennis back also had his first back in 1964. lyle who was one tough defencemen scored against the hawks. >> joe: comcast sportsnet extra nhl coverage we welcome our viewers for csn bay area and csn washington, where it's been more than a blustery day back

in dc. wrist shot an led easily -- handled easily. trying to pick up his first victory this year. southeast division rivals tampa and atlanta. >> craig: looking fresher that the point in the hockey game. nine points in this season, teams will travel to vancouver and play back to back, the second night against this oilers team. they have played a good schedule when it comes to tired, fatigued teams they have to take advantage of here at home. >> joe: angled by semin with a dozen seconds to go in period two. backstrom trying to build the momentum. the 75-footer didn't get through. ovechkin trying to get the rebound as the horn sounds ending two periods of play. so far, so good for edmonton. the guys in the blue sweaters with those two tallies in the

second, giving jeff deslauriers some support. washington, has some catching up to do in the final 20 minutes tonight. the one and only meeting with these two. the oilers start the scoring and finish the scoring in period two. net star 1 intermission live next. gadget power at your seat. room to stretch your legs... and your wingspan. food when you're hungry... and taking off your shoes only if you feel like it. these aren't luxuries, they're basics. get them back on acela. amtrak guest rewards members earn double points this fall for any trip on amtrak. details at amtrak.com

because we believe in the strength of american businesses.

ge capital understands what small businesses need to grow and create jobs. today, over 300,000 businesses rely on ge capital for the critical financing they need to help get our economy back on track. the american renewal is happening. right now.

airing on comcast sportsnet as we join you from rexall place in canada. the edmonton oilers with the 2- 0 advantage. they have been .500 or better at home every year since 18996. trying to get back in the win column. ovechkin needs to get his game back on track in the third. thanks not nhl network, we can share this excerpt from ovechkin nation. >> he brings an uncanny combination of skill, speed, strength, toughness. >> when number 8 is flying down the ice, defenders have a fraction of a second to stop him. >> i think they are scared. he has such a good shot and everything. >> you're trying not to embarrass yourself, although i guess if you look at some the

guys embarrassed, your instinct is there. >> number one i don't want to be burned with him getting around me. he has the best shot in the world and will beat me. >> the more you fall back, the more likely he will shoot threw you. you're just providing the screen for the goalie basically. >> you don't know what will happen even with his own teammate, on the ice, heading to him with a shot coming. >> armed with an unquestionable luck for scoring, seems like blue liners don't have much of a chance stopping the ovechkin line. >> he's doing it with people on his back and falling down. >> everybody sees it as a couple of highlights, but it's the ones where it doesn't look like it's a play. one on two or one on three and then turns into a goal. >> yeah, you want to get a piece of him, yeah you want to take off his head, but there's no way you can.

he's going to match you bound for pound, toughness for toughness and more often than not, beat you anyway. >> so many of his greatest goals are the end to rend, make people miss, dodge two and three guys, and then beat the goalies. that what's he's done against buffalo a couple of times. >> the caps get it back, but it's kept in there. rolled in front of the net. ovechkin starting away. ovechkin to the line, and over, shoots one, scores, ovechkin. >> just a moment to entertain. and the goalie. >> it's hard not to be in awe or to say holy, what did we just see, and as opposed to you know let's get ready for the next shift, he's like a runaway train out there. any time he touches the puck, you can hear this tangible

electricity and buzz around the crowd. >> four on the strum, and victor kozlov coming out of there. alex ovechkin, fires and scores. patrick for ovechkin. >> it went through the defenseman's legs and up over the shoulder. that was in a game he scored four goals and broke his nose, and i think it was the game winner in overtime that night too. not only did he score four goals, he has his nose broken, throwing three pyrotechnical checks, and then to cap the game like he did with the winner in the overtime, that was incredible. >> fired, knocked down. in front, scores! ovechkin scores, the game winning fifth. >> that's how he plays, and how good he is.

i mean that's unbelievable. >> those four defenders, you have to fear what he can do. >> a lot of times there's the added flair landing on his stomach and than instantly coming up with the kiss. >> part of ovechkin's worldwide appeal is the enthusiasm he has on and off the ice. >> one thing about it, he shows up with enthusiasm every time he's on the ice. >> need him to add to the highlight reel tonight. north of the border in edmonton, the oilers with a 2-0 advantage. craig laughlin joining me on the other side of the break to share the highlights with you on comcast sport net.

it's amazing but it bears repeating, the last capital wins here february 7th, 1996. seven straight loss toss the oilers. they lead by two after two. joe beninati and craig laughlin

with you here tonight. what would you do tonight? >> craig: probably switch off the back line. if you split them up it will be tougher to defend. if you split them up, maybe the checking duties will be distributed by pat quinn differently and allow semin and ovechkin to get something going. >> joe: they don't score in the first period, that's a rarity. highlights dominated by edmonton. >> craig: they get the lucky play here. the bounce play going across. trying to go across to alex ovechkin. great first stop. the followup has to be defended better. where was the back check. >> joe: 8th of the year for horcoff. >> craig: and then they get a lucky bounce from the corner. here's putting his foot out. deflecting the young goal tender. >> joe: the assist on

cogliano's markerrer at 16: 42. the statistics from the washington area chevy dealers. >> craig: caps winning faceoff. scoring chances, a low number for the islanders. capitalizing on any opportunities the caps have given them. the caps have to be better with the puck in the third and need 2 2nd and third chances against their net minder. >> joe: a sold out rexall place. enjoying things so far, their team has a two-point advantage. >> craig laughlin breaking out the telestrator in a moment. there is no credit fairy. how else will i get a better credit score? look, you keep your credit card balances low and only open a new card if you really need it. no fairy? announcer: there's no magic to improving your credit. but there's help and it's free. go to creditfairy.org.

top team in the southeast dangling with the top team in the northwest. it's the fifth place squad with the advantage of two. 2-for the oilers. -- 2-0 for the oilers. we are set for the telestrator, showing us edmonton's first goal. >> craig: a simple faceoff in the zone. the puck will be rotated along the wall. that's where the problems

start. the d gets it, hold it here. here comes the hard around. this d here, deciding to pinch or wait for this guy to come. so the faceoff is held, mike green holding the line. hold it here. now it's trouble. greeny is here. schultzy is supported. but he's hoping for someone over there. the puck bounces on him. giving it away. up the middle, no, no, give and go. breakaway. told it here. now you have one here, one here, one coming in, no one picking up that guy, and that's trouble because the first save is made by the goal tender, there's the followup. you have got to go harder on the back check and pick guys up. enjoy the journey. . >> where areny coming -- journey coming to an end soon for the capitals. they need two to tie and we will share it with you just after this. boss: ah! thank goodness you're back.

gecko: what's going on, sir? boss: we're slammed. tons of people interested in all the money they could be saving by switching to geico... gecko: yeah, 'course. boss: boy, did we miss you last week. that temp wasn't working out at all. exec: took me all morning but i got those quarterly figures for ... you. (hissing noise, gulping) gecko: aw, he ate all my mints. anncr: geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance.

our comcast sportsnet coverage of capitals hockey is being brought to you by your washington area chevy dealers. five-year, 100,000-mile power warranties on chevyfirst dom. by td bank. it's america's most convenient bank. and by american service center. and mercedes-benz of alexandria. two locations, one passion, mercedes. gretzky remembered here outside of the rexall place. we have -- we are being seen all over the comcast network tonight. 2-0 for the oilers. both tallies in the second period. this definitely was the ring that belonged to the great number 99. how does he compare with '0ov. >> craig: through the first 350

career games, gretzky got him in just about every category. the wild west run and gun game. just racking them up. with you look at goals, joe, that's pretty close. alex ovechkin, they both had a lot of shot. alex, way more than ov. the one i really like is this one. i just think the goal cents biggest thing. look at the goals, that's pretty good, pretty impressive he's that close to wayne gretzky. i saw a note earlier today about the great one who for 422 games in the mid-'80s already put up 1,000 points, joe. >> joe: yeah, he had talent. he was pretty skilled. the biggest understatement of all. green in call for washington as we start this third period. 24-18. deslauriers has not allowed anything past him. started off good in the opening

period. ovechkin with his stuff, he scores! alex ovechkin would not be denied. >> craig: they are keeping the big thrill together. they connect. sure there were some words talked about in the lockerroom. they came out firing 32 seconds in. not a really fancy goal, hard working goal for alex ovechkin with his 22nd. it's a rebound. starting on a good rush up on the ice. good fore check by nick backstrom getting the primary assist. there's two whack at the buck before deslauriers can cover it with his catching glove. alex on the board in edmonton, putting his team one away from tieing this game up. >> craig: great 8 getting his 32 seconds into period three and then catches his breath. the capitals cut edmonton's lead in half. deslauriers would cover up here. ovechkin from mike green.

at 32 seconds. getting washington start in the third period. against vancouver, craig, i thought he was under wraps for 40 minutes, and then he started to break three. to the front by fleischmann. up think by potulny. trying to find life here. knuble with the look from morrison, right on through. giving knuble a whack with the goalie stick as he was setting the screen. morrison, fleischmann, and knuble this trip. off the defender. activating from a point position. fleischmann spinning to send it wide. >> craig: it's amazing how one good shift can change around the complex of -- complex --

complexion of the feeling on the bench. there's more jam, more excitement. >> joe: three cheers for all the men and women in our technical crew tonight on comcast sportsnet. happy to have you with us as penner and the oilers cling to the one-goal advantage. bea more inner gettic practice for semin. >> craig: i still think feeling ill effects from the groin injury. let's hope it's this week rather than later. >> joe: they won't rush him. 2-1, edmonton with the advantage on the toyota league leader board. o'vetch -- ovechkin with another even strength marker.

>> craig: penner has come even strength. >> joe: capitals winning five of the last eight on the road. this ends the four-game road swing. buffalo on wednesday. and then the devils after the thanksgiving or rather the christmas holiday. a couple of home games in succession. . these oilers will see the blues on monday. just shy of the three-minute mark in the third. tipping it in deep. green, too strong for backstrom. backstrom and ovechkin back out there. o'sullivan sending it wide. trying to bat that down off the boards. stone, lost to backstrom. with his head up instantly, looking to create. trudging his way back. cut off there by o'sullivan.

play gets bogged down on the boards. both teams change personnel. swinging the net, it's backstrom. smoothly to center. alex semin fires one wide, through the defender souray. backstrom on top for green. off the pump fake. he was bum rushed by stortini. ovechkin, the point position, sends it wide. that one was swatted away by deslauriers with the active goalie stick. robert nilsson with a look on the d. >> craig: great acceleration going from moving backwards to laterally moving as you mentioned, joe to deny the opportunity. they were close to the two on one there. >> joe: that didn't look like much, but it was impressive.

edmonton will get a power play right now. they will call it hooking. >> craig: one on one confrontation is often tough, especially against a skill set like on verizon wireless, you make the call. one on one, watch the little curl and drag, right there, once the stick is put between the legs, you're doneesy. the edmonton oils going on the extra man attack. >> joe: here at home, just around 19% effective as it's bat to the boards. it's 2-1 edmonton. ovechkin with the tally in the third period for washington. horcoff settling in at the half wall. crowded by steckel. moving in. this one leaves the rink. >> craig: couldn't get it towards the net there. still over a buck and a half to

work. here's penner, key guy for the hockey team. played a bit in college hockey. was supposedly a member of -- remember wasn't he part of the deal for heatley, joe, in the offseason? he was mentioned a lot with the defencemen. >> joe: he signed a big deal with edmonton in august of '07. that offer came this way. dustin penner has come to life offensively this fall and winter for edmonton. >> craig: they are happy they kept him although heatley is having a nice season in his own right. >> joe: the capitals allowed power play goals in the last three outings. the little squeeze there as they tested blocker side. >> craig: there you see penner in front. green with the smile there. good box out there. nice isolation here on csn from edmonton. nice blockout. greeny trying to get a piece of him. making sure he takes his stick

away. from dustin penner has you look at his numbers leading the team in goals and points. >> joe: steckel and morrison up front on a night play play without sean morrison who aggravated an injury last night in november. kyle wilson and josh erskine reasoning. -- returning. washington without several players still. sam gagner's pass, not quite to the intended target, and the chant is let's go oilers! five and a half into the third period. making it interesting for washington. green, shoulder to shoulder with potulny. point position for gilbert. braces himself for the high

hit. green knocked him down. >> craig: he tried to throw and drag. his stick was broken in half. >> joe: gilbert revving it up for edmonton. cody serving just another three second. he's at the penalty box door. back to even strength for the capitals. important penalty kill there. now we will see if washington can continue the offensive momentum. stone, away somes alexander. o'sullivan waits. good solid defensive play. alex ovechkin fires, kicks, saves, he scores! ovechkin taking matters into his own hands. >> craig: and getting a big cheer to boot here in edmonton. one-man band to start the third period. end to end, picking up the puck

on the right wing. getting two shots before the defense converges on them. you can give them the initial one, i'm okay with that, but defensively, you can't give him this one. look at the angle he beats the goal tender on, that's a goal tender's superstar goal. you can put the puck in a two- inch area. that's on the blocker's side. another amazing goal for the great 8. >> joe: the eighth multigoal game now for the great eight. the capitals have erased the two-goal deficit in the third. float out there for chris clark. the caps trying to bring this four-game road trip to an end in style. >> craig: the oilers are probably not feeling that secure since they did the exact same thing last game.

>> joe: uncontested out of the stone. on the head and shoulder fake, he loses, and they will clear it in five on five action tonights. ovechkin with a pair in the third. backstrom to his knees, and then to his side. >> craig: and now double shifting. every other shift, nick backstrom with semin. >> joe: getting help from sam gagner. getting the pitch fork in. that's knocked down. schultz got his skates in the way. green enjoying the thrust. backstrom with the rebound. on top for schultz. he will spring it will into the corner. gilbert losing ovechkin in. oilers don't get it out. ovechkin on his way, down! he hits the post. >> craig: you can see the oilers wrapping their sticks tighter. >> joe: backstrom walking in,

backer save for deslauriers. it's all washington in the third. >> craig: they need a timeout. >> joe: backstrom turning to the paint. just lost his balance or it would have been three in a row. there's a penalty call here, a trip has been called. 8:27 in. washington has all the momentum, and when they return, they will have the power play. ovechkin back to back 2-2. north of the border. ( clink ) ( glasses clinking in tune ) ( clinking, laughter ) ( glasses clinking in tune ) ( clinking, laughter ) ( glasses clinking in tune ) ( glasses clinking in tune ) ( glasses clinking in tune ) ( clinking, humming ) ( clinking, humming ) ( cheering, humming, clinking )

the damage game sum i have a tale of two hockey games. the oilers were all over the caps, and then the lucky bounce from cogliano. now it's been alex ovechkin and his show. he scored early on and then scored moments ago. it's all out on his 3rd. now 2nd in the nhl with 23 markers. ovechkin from green. it's 2-2. washington going to the power play. sam gagner is boxed in for two minutes for tripping, and now the capitals looking for their first lead on the opening statement. ovechkin coming over to the bench looking for a new set of gloves. >> craig: once they get too wet you don't have a grip on the composite stick. he always has a dry pair available on the bench to get the better feel when he gets

the shot away. >> joe: washington the number one ranked power play in the league on the road, 25%. laich is excused. lowballing a fan 12 rows in the seats. >> craig: they were hoping for a delay of game. they were going to talk about it here. the caps were hoping it went directly from the stick and up. you have to love that. bruce boudreau saying give them another minor. five on three for a delay of game. they will talk it over and say if it was deflected up and over the bench or not. pat quinn watching anxiously. here's the last look. the puck, the shot, oh, man that's too tough to tell. he's giving the oilers a minor penalty here. they will argue about it. sheldon coming right over.

the big irishman, pat quinn giving choice words to the official also. they talked about it, and they may have gotten it right here. did it ramp off green's stick or not. >> joe: let's see if we can share another piece. mike green is the guy closest to gilbert. >> craig: close. i can't tell if it was in there. >> joe: one thing i can tell you, i heard a contact that sounded like stick on stick. that doesn't mean stick on puck. and the efforts of green giving washington a huge advantage right now. a boat load of five of three time. moving towards the nine minute mark in the third. he has two talis, can he provide the natural hat trick? backstrom setting up shot. green, closing in. two-man advantage for the guys

in white. green, for ovechkin on the one- timer. shank. he has to get it right between the two lanes. too far ahead. >> craig: ovechkin, one touch passing. they set it up. the top is there for ovechkin, and he should have shot it. >> joe: exactly. they moved the goalie side to side, which we were talking about, and he has to let that fly. >> craig: green and ovechkin playing catch. on the outside there, there's backstrom. laich setting the screen. green fires at the line, swept away by sneed. what a play there. ovechkin settles. off the goal line. ovechkin going wide by laich. and then laich and deslauriers get into it. >> craig: the caps have to get out there. they have a lot of time to work on the five on three. why get involved physically until the referees sort this

off. they have a faceoff inside as they have plenty of time to get the lead in this game with the extra two men. >> joe: here's the last play. the shot goes there. it must completely go through the line. if not, it will be cleared out. good call by the official. nice job getting in there. >> craig: danny larue, the referee was skating off the line extended, and he gets this one away to keep it 2-2. guys on the ice and seeing it in house at rexall. ovechkin fires, that had to be for staos. green, ovechkin again. >> joe: staios. five on three, 20 seconds now.

ovechkin winds, drives, knocked down. this time by strudwick. >> craig: what a warrior, strudwick with the slap shots. >> joe: ovechkin stepping in, fires, didn't get through. looking for morrison. fire and five seconds. ovechkin fires, deslauriers the save. ovechkin, power play time. deflected wide by knuble. outstanding job by the oilers to keep it 2-2 giving up five on three. better than a minute 40. they receive a standing ovation for it. knuble, challenged by staios. still playing the points edition. five on five action dramatic in the third period, all fueled by alex ovechkin's two early goals. around it's gagner, and he will get it out. super work by the oiler penalty killers and recognized by the

knowledgeable fans. >> craig: how great was the timing of the blocks. they got the pucks to the right guy, ov, regularly. just great timing on the blocked shots. >> joe: the two goalies with the pressure on now. 22. brooks to the front, open man charge. stopped by deslauriers. and then tumbling through the creek. knocked off the peg. 8:25. how is this for saturday night fun with the nhl on comcast sportsnet?

this is the ovechkin cam. alex always has fun before and after the game. before the game, having fun with the workers here on csn. nice hitting by alex ovechkin. the first 40 minutes, not much going his way. a lot of body contact. in the third, a different story. he single-handedly took it over for the caps. the caps have dominated because of those two quick goals for alex ovechkin. his 8th multigoal game of the season. >> joe: in case you're wondering, the capitals have never had a hat trick in this building, not even the great craig laughlin could do that. cogliano on the passing play

with potulny. quinn lynn laing back in -- quinten laing back in the lineup after the broken jaw. his dad was one of the original oilers, joe. back in 1972 in the waj. phil played for the oilers, played a couple of seasons here. it must be really cool going back and forth with both generations playing here in edmonton. >> joe: sheldon souray switching it up for gilbert. quinten joke the jaw with a slap shot to the face. quinten finally got to sink his teeth into a prime rib the other night. >> craig: and man, did he have the biggest smile on his face. >> joe: didn't toe drag that one around. in exchange, here come the

oilers. horcoff, no running room, green was right there in his face. seven minutes to go in the third. nhl on comcast sportsnet. comcast sportsnet nhl extra from rexall place. green, thundering one right to the gut of deslauriers. folks y don't want to miss the casino nook night and -- casino night and auction for the new year. tickets on sale now for washingtoncaps.com. that should be fun. don't let ovechkin take all of your money. [ laughter ] >> craig: they play a lot of cards, a lot of time away from home. >> joe: knuble, high tick -- stick, and he scores! buzz bomb to the roof. >> craig: the fans are up, and they are psyched. what a comeback effort by the caps team in the third period.

the bluebirds are out in edmonton and taken control of one period in the game, and now they may have the w if they continue to put pressure on pat quinn's bunch. morrison to knuble, give and go, and then the set play of the high slot. that's some sort of high shot from thomas fleischmann. mentioning his shooting percentage, may have been deflect on the way there, but what a slap shot. >> joe: knuble with the primary assist. nilsson is taken down. now they will have the penalty kill. fleischmann with points in four of his last five outings to give washington the lead. >> craig: what a slap shot that was. i love the positioning, so important for players to get to the soft areas away from the defense. the penalty up and coming, there it. is fleischmann -- it is.

fleischmann giving them the lead. he needed a rest anyway. they have to close down the power play. >> joe: the penalty killers have already done it once in the third. can they do it again? 6:30 to go in regulation time. three goals unanswered in this third frame by the caps. two from ovechkin the last from fleischmann. dustin penner who has been quiet tonight, right to the midsection. he has it surrounded. >> craig: good stop. good positioning for newt -- for neuvirth. in an area the caps have had little success. >> neuvirth has won nine of the last eleven. save percentage on the year around 9.30. nilsson working in. nilsson's pass for penner.

horcoff, challenged by brooks laich. he says get out of here. >> craig: good job by brooks. especially on the pk, get that puck down, and make them go the full 200. >> joe: the capitals trying to end the four-game road swing in style after a loss last night in vancouver. gilbert closing in. one minute on the power play for edmonton. bombs away. rebound is loose. quick whistle comes. sheldon souray with the bionic wrist. can he ever bring it. >> craig: he has the record here of 106.7 miles an hour. it doesn't register with the nhl when they have their superskills, but that's the mark right now. this is how he can bring it on the thompson creek window of opportunity. a lot of traffic in front as you can see there. and he just brings the puck at over 10 20 miles an hour. how are you going to stop that?

great stop through traffic. >> the window was apparently closed? >> craig: yes. >> joe: gilbert forced back to center on the regroup. >> craig: it was so fast, he went high. >> joe: shattered the window. deslauriers. >> craig: adventurous out there, isn't it? >> joe: he's not martie apparently. kg ran know down the -- cogliano down the wing. muzzled in there. david steckel pouncing on it. 4:58 to go in the third. early sunday morning, saturday night, here, sunday morning, back home, the caps on the advantage. for bradley, not out. nice keeping by gilbert, and then bradley with the stick to

itiveness staying to the center. >> craig: we didn't see this energy in the first 40 minutes and then the score, now a couple of good shifts in a row, and you're feeling better about yourself, and the legs are going the caps' way in the third period. >> and the caps who want to be considered an elite team. the elite teams close this one out. the best teams in the business, finnish off. bruce boudreau knows that. he's coaching and em mothering his guys to keep it up. penalty killers on this third period on contective occasions. -- consecutive occasions. outshooting badly as you would imagine if they are outshooting them by three. the big man showing good hands. sneed, who prevented a mike green goal in the third. down the wing. giving up his body there. there was tyler sloan.